Contact: Clark Teuscher, Sports Information Director, 630-637-5302

USTFCCCA All-Academic Individuals
USTFCCCA All-Academic Teams

July 15, 2022 - The United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) has recognized the North Central College women's track & field team for its success in both athletics and academics, awarding the Cardinals the Team Academic Award for the 16th consecutive season and naming eight student-athletes to the individual All-Academic list.
 
The Cardinals earn the honor after posting a team grade-point average of 3.46 for the academic year. To be eligible for the award, institutions must be USTFCCCA members and compile a team GPA of 3.10 or better. Just more than 150 NCAA Division III women's programs made the list this season, including College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) rivals Carroll University, Carthage College, Elmhurst University, Millikin University, North Park University and Wheaton College.
 
The Cardinals' individual award winners include two four-time honorees in thrower Alexandra Draves and pole vaulter Kathy Myrda, while hurdler Julia Babinec and distance runner Jenna Fiore make the list the second time. Pole vaulters Kiarah Horn and Natalie Johnson, multi-event athlete Hannah Jones and sprinter Lindsey Novak receive their first All-Academic recognition.

Draves, an international business major, improved the North Central indoor record in the 20-pound weight throw to 58'3" and placing first at the CCIW Indoor Championship and taking eighth at the NCAA Division III Indoor Championship to earn All-America honors. Draves ranked 20th in the nation outdoors in the hammer throw (171'6") before placing ninth at the Division III Outdoor Championship. 

Myrda, an athletic training major, achieved the highest mark by any NCAA Division III competitor outdoors in 2022, clearing 13'1.50" (4.00m) at North Central's Carius/Gregory Invitational. The 2022 CCIW outdoor champion, Myrda placed 14th in the national indoor championships and 17th outdoors.

Babinec, a double major in international business and Spanish, won the Division III indoor championship in the 60-meter hurdles and won CCIW indoor titles in the 55-meter hurdles and 200-meter dash. Babinec collected first-place finishes in the 100-meter hurdles and 4-by-100-meter relay at the CCIW Outdoor Championships before earning All-America accolades with a fourth-place showing in the hurdles and a sixth-place finish in the relay. A double major in marketing and accounting, Fiore won CCIW titles in the indoor distance medley relay and outdoor 1,500-meter run.

Johnson, a health science major, placed third in the CCIW in the pole vault indoors and outdoors, while Horn, a biology major, finished fourth in both meets. Johnson placed 13th at the Division III Indoor Championship. Jones finished second in the pentathlon and 4x400-meter relay at the CCIW Indoor Championships before finishing second in the javelin throw, third in the 4x400 relay, fourth in the 400-meter hurdles and seventh in the heptathlon at the outdoor CCIW meet. A biology major, Jones ranks fifth in North Central history in the pentathlon and javelin throw and eighth in the heptathlon. 

Novak established a new North Central indoor record in the 200-meter dash (25.42) and placed 10th nationally, then placed first in the 400-meter dash and second in the 200 at the CCIW Outdoor Championship before earning All-America honors alongside Babinec in the 4x100-meter relay. Novak is a psychology major and ranks second in the program's history in the outdoor 200.
 
In all, more than 500 Division III student-athletes made the list, including 68 from the CCIW.
 
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